Steering machinery for ferry-boats



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. P. MANTON.

STEERING MAGHINERY FOR PERRY BOATS.

No. 350,465. Patented Oct. 5, 1886.

EJDDDDEI EIE|EH] -n mmm INVENTDR- N. PETERS. Pho ooooo o oo r. Washington. n.c

UNITED STATES ATENT FFICEQ JOSEPH P. MANTON, or raovmnncn, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO EDGARTON BYNNER, or BROOKLYN, NEWYORK.

STERING MACHINERY FR FERRY-BOATS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.350,465, dated October 5, 1886,

I Application filed Fehruary23, 1880. Serial No. 192,835. (No model.)

T0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH P. MANTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Provi dence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Impr0vements in Steering Ma chinery for Ferry-Boats; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specitication.

Mypresent invention relates to improved mechanism for steering ferry-boats or doubleended vessels having a rudder at each end thereof.

My invention consists, essentially, in the novel construction and arrangement of the steam-steering mechanism, the same compris- 1ng a motor or engine having two loosely mounted steering-drums directly connected -therewith, which in turn connect with the rudders, mechanism for locking said drums to the shafts, and mechanism -for operating the reversing-valve of the engine.

The invention further consists in the novel arrangement in the pilot-houses of the valve operating lever, whereby the movement of said lever coincides with and indicates the po sition of the rudder, all as will be more fully hereinafter set for-th and claimed.

The object of my invention is to so construct, arrange, and connect a steering engine that it will operate either rudder at will, as desired.

The arrangement is further adapted to be used in co1ijunction with hand-steering drums located in the pilot-houses.

By means of the invention a steersman in the forward pilot-house is enabled toreadily control the movement of the after rudder, the lever which actuates the reversing-valve at the same time serving to indicate the rudders position, said meehanism being an improvement upon that shown and claimed in my United States Patent No. 317,817, of May 12, 1885.

In the accompanying two shects of drawings, illustrating my invention, Figure 1 represents a side view of a ferry-boat in partial vibration of the :rudder.

mechanism for operating the reversing-valve,

said device being connected to a 1ever or wheel mounted in each pilot-house. Each drum is frictionally connected to a drivinggear by means of a screw and levr, which in turn connects with andis operated byatreadle lever 'mounted in the respective pilot-houses. Fi g. 3 is a detached view showing the revers: ingvalve 1ever asinounted in the pilot-house, the same being provided with means to adjust and limit the angular movement of the lever, said movement corresponding to the travel or One of said levers is mounted in each pilot-house and connected With the lever at the engine, forminga part of the reversing mechanism. Fig. 4, Sheet 2, is a plan view showing the general arrangement of the engine, rudders, drums, and connections, thedeck being removed, but showing a portion of each pilot-house. Fig. 5 is an enlarged side view through the floor of a pilot-- of the invention, including the manner of its operation.

A, again referring to the drawings, designates the ferry-boat asa whole, the same being furnished with two pilot-houses, B, and the two rudders C, arranged as common to vessels of this class.

E indicates the steering engine or motor as a whole, the same consisting of the engines E, which operatea crank-shaft upon which a screw-worm is secured, the latter engaging a worm-wheel, F, secured to a shaft, H, the latter being extended toward the cylinders, and provided with a threaded sleeve or bushing, b, which is adapted to longitudinally move a reversing-valve suitably mounted in the cas ing J, for the purpose of admitting steam into make no claim, however, to this construction of the valve, &c., as the same forms the subject of another application for Letters Patent filed by me in the United States Patent Office, Serial No. 186,292. The outer end of said shaft H, which projects beyond the bearing d, is provided with a gearwheel, e, which in turn intergears with the gear e, secured to each drum-shaft 03 arranged on op posite sides of the machine, as clearly shown in Fig. .4. Upon each of said shafts i is a looselymounted drum, D, having its inner end,f, made slightly eonieal, for the purpose of frietionally engaging the said driving-gear e, which is provided with a circular recess forming the couuterpart of the cone f. The port drum D operates the wire rope 8, which connects with the tiller of the forward rudder, and the starboard drum, by means of the rope4, scrves a like purpose for the after rudder.

i z, Fig. 2, indicate screw-threaded rods or bolts, each mounted in a stationary nut, i, and having a weighted levcr, L, secured to each rod. ward and after pilot-houses,connect with said weighted lovers and operate the starboard and port drums, respectively.

Eachpilot-house is provided with a device for operating its respective levcr L, as repre sented in Fig. 5, the same consisting of a pivoted bell-erank levcr, r, supported beneath the deck of the pilothouse, and having the push- 10d R, extending from the levcr 7' up through said deck, the other arm of the levcr having the rope 7 or 8 leading to the levcr L cennected thcrewith, the upper end of the rod R being provided with an enlargement, as shown. \Vhile'in use, when steering by the employment of steam-power, the rod is depressed and retained in position by means of the catch 7', thereby looking the drum D to the gear c through the medinm of itslever L, &C.

The reversing-valve mechanism eomprises a stand, ZP, in which atapped block, e, is fitted to slide freely. One side of the block is provided with teeth c, Figs. 2 and 7, thus serving as a rack into which the toothed sector 7a of the levcr K engages. The end 71 of the shaft H is provided with keys,which serve to unite it with the screw-threaded bushing Z), the latter being serewed into the block c, be foro described.

a is the val ve-rod. It is obvious that any angular movement of the levcr K will cause the rod and bushing to move longitudinally independent of the shafts (H) rotation, thereby aetuating the ieversing-valve in the casing J as desired. It is also obvious thatif theleverK be held iu position, the rotary movement of the shaft will screw the bushing along the'nnt c, thereby serving to shut off steam from the engines E.

l\I indicates an arm or1ever pivoted in each pilot-house B to a stand secured to the floor,

m being the removable operatinghahdla \Vires 7 and S, leading from the for- N is a standard provided with the adj usting steps n and the graduated are a, all as clearly shown in Fig. 3. The length of this are corresponds to the angular movementof the rudders.

Each respective levcr M is connected by means of suitably-supported wire ropes with the levcr K, before describedthat is,the wire rope 5, leading from the forward pil.othouse levcr M, connccts both sidcs of the levcr K, and the wire rope 6, leading from the after pilot-house, is similarly connected to saidlever K.

The number of revolutions of a drum required to carry the rudder to one extreme or the other from its central or fore-audaft position,correspomls to the dotted and full line posi tion of the levcr m shown in Fig. 3, the same in turn corresponding to the extreme position right or left from the central position of the levcr K, Fig. 2, and causing a corrcspomling movement of the reversing-valvc-that is to say, by moving the levcr K toward the left will admit steam into the cylinders Fl and run the engines iu one direction, and by moving it toward the right steam is admitted into the cylinders to revolve the engincs iu the reverse direction.

The several wire ropes are provided with turn-bueklcs or take-ups T, for obvious pu rposes, as usual.

Gr indicates a hand steering-drum mounted in each pilotd1ouse and connected to the tillers v, as usual, the wire rope 2 leading from the forward drum,G, to the after rudder, and the wire-ropel leading from the after drum to the forward rudder, as indieated in Figs.l and 4.. This hand-steering arraugement in nowse interferes with the steam-steering apparatus.

The general arrangement of the leading wire ropes shown in Fig. 4 may be materh ally modified praetially in order to eeonomize room, &c., said ropes in the drawings being separated for the purpose of pern1itting them to be the more readily traced out.

Desiring to run the boat ahead, as indi cated by the arrow, the operation in stecring by steam would bc substantially as follows: The pin P, howevcr, is first inserted in the socket p of the forward rudder, and the locking-pin P of the after rudder withdrawn from its eorresponding socket, as shown in l ig. 1. Now, to move the ruddersay from the central to the hardastarboard" position-the steersman first deprcsses the rod lt by means of his foot, thereby frictionally looking the starboard drum D to the driving gear e. The steersman next.grasps the handle m of the levcr l\[ and forces it over to the extreme starboard position, (sec Fig. 3,) which movement, by means of the wire-rope connection 5, forces the reversiug-valve levcr li to the extreme right position, and admits steam into the engines E, thereby cansing themto re vo1ve the drum D in the proper direction, and by means of the tiller-rope i moving the rudder the distance desired. At the same time ICO the shaft H in revolving acts to automatically the whole constructed and arranged whereby close the valve through the medium of the mechauism b o, &c., so that the lever K stands r in its central or normal position, as shown, at the time the rudder arrives at its extreme star-board position. A reversal of the foregoing movements returns the rudder to the foreandaft position again. By moving the reversing-lever m to port, steam then enters the cylinders Efrom the opposite direction, and causes the drum D to revolve in a reverse direction, and thus by means of the other rope, 4, carries the rudder to the left or port. The angular movement of the levermcorresponds to the angular movement of the rudder, said lever thus forming an indication of the rudders position.

In steering by hand the pressure is first removed from the rod R, which thereby-releases f the loosely-mounted drum D from the drivingwheel e, the steersman then manipulating the steering-wheels of the drum G, as usual, 2 being the steering-ropes leading therelrom to the after-tiller for the purpose, as shown. Vhen the boat is running stern first, the manner of steering by steam is substantially the same as when the boat is running in the other direction, before described, except that the rod R of the after pilot-house is connected withthe friction-clutch by means of the wire rope 8, and the reversing-lever M is connected with the lever K by a wire rope, 6, 3 3 being the tiller-ropes leading from the port drum D to the forward rudder, while ropes 1 lead from the pilot-house drum G to the said rudder.

It is obvious that.a suitably-mounted trickwheel may be substituted for the reversinglever M; also many minor changes or modifi-.

cations may be made in the construction and tions without departing from the spirit ofthe invention.

I do not claim, broadly, as my inveniion the device herein shown for frictionally locking a loosely-mounted steeringdrunrto a driving-gear; but

What I do claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a ferry-boat or doubleended vessel having a rudder at each end thereof, a motor or engine, two suitably-mounted drumshafts, a gearavheel secured to each shaft, asteeringdrum, D, loosely mounted en each shaft, located at the rear of and actuated by said mo tor, a frictiou-head, lever, and connections for frictionall y locking said drums and gearwheels together, and mechanism, consisting of a flexible connection, a lever, a screw-threaded bushing mounted on a driven shaft, and anut actuated by said lever and shaft for opening and closing the reversing-valve of the motor or engine, in combination with two pilothouses,*each having a'suitably-mounted hand lever or wheel adapted to operate the said reversing-valve lever, andan arm and flexible connections for actuatingthe said lookinglever of the corresponding steering-drum, D,

the steersman is enabled to contr'ol the movement of the rudder, substantially as shown, and hereinbefore set forth.

2. In a ferry-boat or double ended vessel having a rudder and a suitably mounted and connected hand-steering drum at each end thereof, the combination therewith of the power-driving mechanism herein described, consisting, essentially, of the motor E, having loosely-mounted steering-drums connected to each rudder, means, snbstantially as shown, for locking the drums D to the driving-wheels e, a lever, K, &c., for operating the reversingvalve of the engines, and levers M R, mounted in each pilot-house,connected, respectively, to said reversingvalve lever K, and the drums and-looking device for operating the same, the whole constructed and arranged whereby the steersman is enabled to control the movement of the rudder from each pilot-house, as desired. 7

3. The eombination,with the reversing-valve mechanism of a steam steering-engine adapted to independent] y operate the two rudders of a ferry-boat, of a bar or lever mounted in each pilot-house, a frame in which the lever is pivoted, two stops for limiti ng the angular movement of the free end of the lever, and ropes or flexible connections secured to the other arnu of the lever, and the reversing-valve mechanism, substantially as shown, and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.

4. The combination, with a hand steeringdrum, G, mounted in each pilot-house of a ferry-boat, rudders CC, and ropes 1 2, connecting said drums and rudders, of the motor or engine E, twoloosely-mounted steering-drums, D D, actuated by said motor, wire ropes 3 4, leading from said drums Dto the respective rudders, mechanism, substantially as shown and described, for looking and unlocking the drumsD to and from the driving-gears e, connections 7 8, for-actuating said mechanism, a leveror rod, R, mounted in each pilot-house for operating the connections 7 8, a valve-reversingmechanism for the engines, provided with the lever K, a lever or triekwheel, M, suitabl y mounted in each pilot-house, and wire ropes5 6, connecting the respective levers MM with the lever K, the whole constructed and arranged substantially as shown, and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.,

5 In a ferry-boat provided with two rudders,

IIO

IIS

C C, pilot-housesB B, and hand steering-drums 6. The eombination,with a steering-engine, Y the reversing-valve, and lever for actuating said valve, of the lever M, frame N, in which the latter lever is pivoted, stops n n, mounted o the lever and the reversing-valve 1ever of a steam steeringengue, all construeted and mmnged substantiztlly as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

In testimonywhereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOSEPH P. MANTO.

\Vitnesses:

G130. H. REMINGTON, JOHN T. HENTHORN. 

